1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a firewall that is attached to an aircraft pylon for mounting an engine of an aircraft to a wing.
2. Description of the Related Art
A turbofan type engine of an aircraft is mounted to a wing via a structural member called a pylon strut (see, for example, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2011-116186).
As shown in FIG. 5, a pylon strut 1 is provided on an undersurface of a wing 2 so as to extend toward a front (x) in a flying direction. An engine 4 includes a fan section 4a at the front thereof which is mounted to an undersurface of the pylon strut 1 by a front engine mount 5, and a core section 4b at the rear thereof which is mounted to the undersurface of the pylon strut 1 by a rear engine mount 6. The engine 4 is covered by a cylindrical nacelle 7. The nacelle 7 has a structure capable of being opened and closed. Opening the nacelle towards the right and left enables maintenance and inspection of the engine 4 and its auxiliary machines accommodated in the nacelle. In addition to suspending the engine 4, the pylon strut 1 serves as a pathway through which fuel feeding pipes and electrical cables extending from the body of the aircraft to the engine 4 pass.
It is well known that, in order to improve aircraft safety, a fire-protection zone is provided to separate the engine from the aircraft body. Generally, the fire-protection zone is partitioned by a firewall, i.e., a partition between the engine 4 and the pylon strut 1. As the pylon strut 1 generally has a box-shaped structure with a stiffener member provided inside, the outer wall can be used as a part of the firewall. Or, the pylon strut 1 may be provided with an independent firewall fixed thereon. Thus, considering that electrical cables, for example, pass through the pylon strut 1 and a fire can occur in such a case, it is desirable for the firewall to prevent any flames from spreading.
National Publication of International Patent Application No. 2008-519409 has proposed an electrical connector assembly in which a female connector is fixed to a firewall served by a pylon strut, thereby ensuring a reversible fitting of the engine onto the pylon strut, in addition to providing a firewall function, without significantly increasing the overall dimensions and the weight of a connecting structure between the engine and the pylon strut. National Publication of International Patent Application No. 2008-519409 also teaches that a connector assembly has male and female connectors provided with a fire protection core made of fire-resistant sealant, thereby preventing passage of flames through the connector assembly.